Magic Matterhorn (1995) is an essayistic documentary by Swiss director Anka Schmid about the meaning of ones homeland, its clichés and reality. The mountain

Matterhorn The (, ; it, Cervino, ; french: Cervin, ; rm, Matterhorn) is a mountain of the Alps, straddling the main watershed and border between Switzerland and Italy. It is a large, near-symmetric pyramidal peak in the extended Monte Rosa area of the ...

is the starting point for the portrayal of a ‚part-time‘ farmer from the Swiss mountain village

Zermatt Zermatt () is a municipality in the district of Visp in the German-speaking section of the canton of Valais in Switzerland. It has a year-round population of about 5,800 and is classified as a town by the Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO). ...

, a professional Swiss yodeler in

Disneyland Disneyland is a amusement park, theme park in Anaheim, California. Opened in 1955, it was the first theme park opened by The Walt Disney Company and the only one designed and constructed under the direct supervision of Walt Disney. Disney in ...

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

and the cabaret group called '' Geschwister Pfister''.

Storyline

In a playful manner the film embarks on the search for contemporary notions of homeland and shows real and surreal worlds. The film was shot in the Swiss tourist village Zermatt at the foot of the iconic mountain Matterhorn as well as in Disneyland in California where there is a copy of the Matterhorn. Anka Schmid confronts concrete living conditions with clichés and is not afraid of the balancing act between philosophical thoughts and kitsch-souvenirs. The Matterhorn serves as a

leitmotif A leitmotif or leitmotiv () is a "short, recurring musical phrase" associated with a particular person, place, or idea. It is closely related to the musical concepts of ''idée fixe'' or ''motto-theme''. The spelling ''leitmotif'' is an anglici ...

. People from Zermatt, tourists from all over the world and an American-Swiss explain their understanding of homeland and their relationship with the mystically superelevated mountain Matterhorn. The interviews are being accompanied by pictures of the mountain and performances by the cabaret-group.''Magic Matterhorn''
on Swiss Films

Festivals

* September 1995:

Nyon Nyon (; outdated German language, German: or ; outdated Italian language, Italian: , ) is a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality in Nyon District in the Cantons of Switzerland, canton of Vaud in Switzerland. It is located some 25 kilomet ...

, 26th Festival International du Cinéma Documentaire * January 1996:

Solothurn Solothurn ( , ; french: Soleure ; it, Soletta ; rm, ) is a List of towns in Switzerland, town, a Municipalities of Switzerland, municipality, and the Capital (political), capital of the canton of Solothurn in Switzerland. It is located in the n ...

, 31st

Solothurn Film Festival The Solothurn Film Festival (SFT) is the most important festival for Swiss film productions. Founded in 1966 in the Swiss city of Solothurn, the annual festival presents a representative selection of Swiss feature, documentary, and short film produ ...

* March 1996: Créteil 18, Festival International du Film de Femmes * April/May 1996:

Trento Trento ( or ; Ladin and lmo, Trent; german: Trient ; cim, Tria; , ), also anglicized as Trent, is a city on the Adige River in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol in Italy. It is the capital of the autonomous province of Trento. In the 16th centu ...

, 44th Filmfestival International Montagna Esplorazione * April/May 1996:

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

/St. Paul, 14th Rivertown International Film Festival * September 1996:

Les Diablerets Les Diablerets is a village and ski resort located in the municipality of Ormont-Dessus in the canton of Vaud, Switzerland. The village lies at an altitude of on the north side of the massif of the Diablerets, , in the Swiss Alps. It can be a ...

, 27th Festival International du Film Alpin, receiving a special award by the jury * September 1996:

Figueira da Foz Figueira da Foz (), also known as Figueira for short, is a city and a municipality in the Coimbra District, in Portugal. Practically at the midpoint of the Iberian Peninsula's Atlantic coast, it is located at the mouth of the Mondego River, west ...

, 25th Festival international de cinéma

Reviews

In the ''International Film Encyclopedia'' ''Magic Matterhorn'' is described as an "amusing documentary, which thanks to the contrasting juxtaposition of various views ended up being very multifaceted but over time is lacking identity."Magic Matterhorn
in the International Film Encyclopedia

References

External links

* German article on ''Magic Matterhorn'' o
www.hossli.com
* ''Magic Matterhorn'' o
Swissfilms
* ''Magic Matterhorn'' o
www.artfilm.ch
1995 films Swiss documentary films 1995 documentary films 1990s German-language films Swiss German-language films Swiss independent films 1995 independent films {{1990s-documentary-film-stub